Since becoming a hip hop producer, I have had many beginners with no prior experience ask me how they can get started making hip hop beats. To answer these requests, I have decided to make a guide showing you how to make your first hip hop beat even if you have no prior experience, and minimum cost or investment. Many people are pushed away from making even a single hip hop beat because of the percieved costs involved. Many people think making a beat requires going to the studio and spending thousands of dollars. Still others think the only way is to buy an expensive desktop beat making suite like Reason or Protools. This couldn’t be further from the truth. The best place for a beginner to start making hip hop beats is with an online hip hop beat maker. These websites are like Facebook for producers. The best sites give you access to top of the line software right on the website, as well as guides, tips, and free beats and samples to help you get started. When choosing an online beat maker, you must keep your eyes open for a number of features. The first and most obvious thing is ease of use. If you don’t understand the technical aspects of sound or audio, you are going to want the simplest interface possible. Things like one-click saving to mp3 are an essential part of this simplicity. For a good place to get started, try the #1 rated online beat maker Sonic Producer. Not only can you make your own beats quickly and easily, they will teach you how, and give you the opportunity to advance your career as a producer.. all for less than $30. Once you have a membership to Sonic Producer or similar site, it’s time to make a hip hop beat.

What makes up a hip hop beat? Well, just like any other song there are the basic song elements like intro, chorus, bridge, etc. To start, we will just make a single looping beat, to which an intro or any other elements can be added. When making beats, I like to start low and work my way up. This means I start with the kick drums and bass, and build the track on top of that. Start by choosing a tempo or time signature… any where from 80-120 beats per minute will do. Then, choose a kick drum. Lay out the kicks every 4 beats, or in any way you want, but this is the simplest way to start. The key is timing. Add hats, claps, or snaps, half way between every kick beat or every other beat. Once you have this basic framework laid, you can tweak it and be as creative as you want. This is only a short introduction to making your own beats online; to see the rest of the details on making your first beat, check out Beat Makers Online right now.